News Bulletin of 7 April 2026, 10am

South Africa is mourning the loss of cultural icon Albert Mazibuko, the longest-serving member and final link to the original Ladysmith Black Mambazo line-up. Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie joined tributes for the 77-year-old, who passed away on Sunday. Mazibuko was a cousin to the group’s founder the late Joseph Shabalala. Shabalala had a series of dreams in the 1960s about a new style of harmony and recruited Mazibuko in 1969 to help turn those dreams into the sound that would define (isee cat ameeya) — a South African, all-male, a cappella singing style originating from Zulu migrant workers.

Kempton Park resident Malcom S. Legare has been selected to showcase his film,The Creation of Modimolle: The Mountain That Remembers Me, at the Joburg Film Festival. Legare says that being selected for the Joburg Film Festival was a surreal moment and that it was not just an affirmation of the film, but of the journey behind it. Navigating diverse cultural, academic, and professional spaces inspired him to explore questions of identity and belonging. Legare found that the essay-film format gave him the freedom to express his ideas without the constraints of traditional storytelling.

Two hundred elderly residents in Jeffreys Bay will receive free access to a major local arts event as part of an initiative honoring those who helped build the town. The program is part of Kunskoors’ newly launched Living Legends project, designed to reconnect senior citizens with the community’s cultural life and recognize their lasting contributions. Kunskoors director Soria Swart says the festival has always been more about people and connection than art. The event will take place on the first weekend of May.